The doctor went to work before the finals and ultimately won the $136,054 prize.

Family physician Kyle Smith won the Potomac Summer Poker Open $3,000 Main Event, taking home $136,054. He even went to work the day before the finals, ultimately defeating a field of 280 players to claim the title.

One hand changed Kyle Smith's fate. He either gained a huge chip lead or—as he put it—made history as "the biggest mistake in tournament poker." However, Smith ultimately found himself on the right side, and it gave him a decisive advantage at the final table of the Potomac Summer Poker Open $3,000 Main Event.

Smith doubled up against Patrick Martorella, the day's starting chip leader, at the start of the final table, gaining a huge chip lead that propelled him to victory. The family doctor won the championship and the top prize of $136,054 after reaching a heads-up deal with Phong Nguyen.

Potomac Summer Poker Open $3,000 Main Event Final Table Results

Start working before the final table

"This is so exciting. The prize money is more meaningful than the trophy, but it's also fun to say you've come out on top of a field of 280. I have a lot of respect for my opponent, who put me in a very, very difficult situation in heads-up. We agreed to split the prize. But it's still great to take some trophies home," Smith said as he lifted the trophy after beating out a field of 280.

Smith describes himself as a recreational player. He's from Michigan and now works as a family physician in Bethesda, Maryland. He even went to work this morning before coming to the final table. According to The Hendon Mob, his live tournament winnings before this event were only around $90,000, with his career-best finish being a second-place finish in the 2023 Potomac Open Mystery Bounty Event at MGM National Harbor, earning $51,000. His winnings today far exceed the sum of all his past winnings, but this won't significantly alter his poker career.

"I'm a recreational player. I only slept four hours last night and went to work this morning, so it won't change my poker career. Financially, it might be a little different," he said.

Smith made the correct diagnosis of Martorella.

Smith entered the final table at 1 p.m. local time with fourth-place chips, as six players returned to compete for the trophy. In the early hands, he faced Martorella all-in on the turn. After a few minutes of deliberation, Smith called with 8 pairs, while Martorella had a straight and a flush draw. Smith held on, doubling up significantly and gaining a substantial chip lead over the rest of the final table.

"At the time, I was thinking that if I called and was wrong, it would be one of the biggest mistakes in tournament poker history. But I made the right decision and luckily avoided many pitfalls," he said. "This gave me more confidence and patience. I felt I didn't need to rush things, and I could put others in more difficult situations."

Smith then hit a straight on the river, eliminating Chris Kiani in sixth place, while Martorella recouped some chips after calling Jonathan Moritz's all-in with 5 pairs. Moritz needed an Ace to survive, but he failed to connect with the board, and the BetMGM online qualifier was eliminated in fifth place.

Martorella then went all-in with 1,270,000, and Smith called from the small blind. Smith hit top pair on the flop, while Martorella made two pair with K and 7 on the river. He started celebrating doubling up, but Smith then pointed out that he held A and J, winning the pot. Martorella's game ended in fourth place, with Smith holding 60% chips in a three-way battle.

Justin Liberto was the most impressive player to enter the final table. The two-time WSOP bracelet winner is a regular in some of the biggest buy-in events in poker history, boasting over $8 million in live winnings. But he couldn't beat the "Doctor" today. After losing several pots to Smith, Liberto went all-in from the small blind with his final 1,000,000. Nguyen called from the big blind with 9pair, a lightning-fast call, and Liberto's 8-high couldn't overcome the deficit, leaving him in third place.

An agreement was reached after Nguyen launched a counterattack.

Smith started heads-up with a 13,400,000 to 3,400,000 lead, and the two opponents agreed to review the stats and discuss a deal. Nguyen received an offer of an additional $12,000 on top of the $112,048 runner-up prize, but he declined. "I have nothing to lose," he said, and they continued heads-up.

Smith beat Nguyen's pocket tens with K pair in a huge pot, sending Nguyen down to under 2,000,000. Nguyen then doubled up on the flop with top pair Q against Smith's nine pair. Nguyen hit a flush and a nut straight in the next two hands to take the chip lead for the first time at the final table. Just as the players were about to take a break, they saw a board with two tens, and Smith bet 1,700,000 on the river. Nguyen called with Q-10, but Smith, holding A-10, won the huge pot and regained the chip lead.

When they returned from their break, they agreed to review the data again. They quickly reached a deal: Nguyen would take approximately $130,000, and Smith would receive $137,000. They even shared the trophy—Smith took the glass MGM National Harbor trophy, while Nguyen took the black BetMGM trophy. However, Smith, as the official champion, was allowed to sit in the spotlight for his victory photo.

Smith explained that even when Nguyen started to fight back and took the lead in heads-up play, he never lost hope. "I told myself to be patient and play at my own pace. It's easy to feel like everything is slipping away, but ultimately, we were still playing very, very deep, and there was still a lot of poker to play. So I told myself to be patient and let it happen naturally," he said.

He will return to work at the clinic tomorrow, but today, Smith can call himself a champion after making the most important diagnosis of his poker career.

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